Aiming for victory by taking the goal to advance to the semifinal round!

J League YBC Levain Cup Quarterfinals Second Leg, facing Avispa Fukuoka away.

The first game saw Nakajima score the opening goal, but in the final moments, they allowed Fukuoka to score, resulting in a 1-1 draw.
Advancing to the semifinal round is determined by the number of wins in the two matches, followed by goal difference, and then away goals. At this point, Fukuoka, who scored an away goal, has a slight advantage.

In order to advance, Tokyo worked on various attacking patterns during the 3-day preparation period, as goals are essential. They also prepared for movements such as taking advantage of the opponent's back or luring the DF out from the side.

However, in place of Muriqui who was injured in the first match, Nakajima was placed on the left side. In addition, Insoo YU made his first start at the top, and Kajiyama and Tanabe were placed in the starting lineup as defensive midfielders.

Fukuoka, on the other hand, had Nakamura playing as right back in the first game, but in the second game, Furube will play on the right side. In addition, Suetoshi will be in the midfield, and the rest of the starting lineup will be the same as the first game.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　
The match was held at away Fukuoka, which was in danger of being cancelled due to the approaching typhoon, but the game started at 7:04 PM in Tokyo.

Tokyo takes a valuable away goal and leads in the second half!

2 minutes: Kicker Higashi kicked a ground right CK, and Insoo in the area hit it with his left foot, but GK Ibomu Young saved it in front.
5 minutes: Heavy rain begins to fall.

15 minutes: The game continues with a back-and-forth battle for control in the middle.
17 minutes: From about 20 meters in front of the goal, Nakajima boldly takes a shot, but it goes over the crossbar.

25 minutes: Fukuoka Kicker MF Danilson's cross was headed by DF Hamada in front of the goal, shaking the goal net, but it was judged as a foul just before.
30 minutes: Higashi expands to the right side with Muroya. Muroya's cross is deflected by the defender, but Kajiyama and Tanabe connect with the loose ball, and Tanabe's shot from outside the area finds the top right corner of the goal, making it 1-0.
Tokyo takes the lead, putting them in a position to surpass Fukuoka in the total of 2 games.
32 minutes: Fukuoka intensifies their attack. From outside the area, Suyoshi and others take consecutive shots. Tokyo's DF line defends by putting their bodies on the line.

In the back and forth battle for control, Tanabe takes the lead with a super goal from the middle range, and the first half ends 1-0.

Takahashi's additional goal pushes Fukuoka ahead, advancing to the semifinal round!

Second half begins with Fukuoka's kickoff.
49 minutes: Tokyo takes control of the game by passing the ball through midfielders Tanabe and Kajiyama.
47 minutes: Nakajima's shot is blocked in the crowded area.
55 minutes: Fukuoka FW Jogo dribbles alone from the right side. However, this is calmly dealt with by Tokunaga and Takahashi.

60 minutes: Fukuoka makes their first player substitution. MF Suyoshi is replaced by FW Sakata.
63 minutes: Tokyo substitutes Kono for Hashimoto.
63 minutes: Fukuoka launches a wave attack. DF Kamekawa's middle shot is blocked by Tokyo DF.
65 minutes: Hashimoto, who came on as a substitute, moved to the left side, Higashi to the right side, and Nakajima and Insoo YU in the center.
68 minutes: The DF line consists of Yoshimoto, Takahashi, and Tokunaga as a 3-back.

72 minutes: Tokyo makes its second player substitution. Insoo YU is replaced by Maeda.
74 minutes: East, who cut the pass in their own territory. East → Maeda → Nakajima connects and East runs up the right side again, but is fouled and earns a free kick.
75 minutes: Far side Takahashi heads in the FK from Kicker Higashi's goal. Tokyo gets the additional point they wanted!
76 minutes: Fukuoka makes their second substitution. FW Jogo is replaced by MF Mishima.
77 minutes: Fukuoka makes their final substitution. FW Kunimori is replaced by FW Kunimoto.

84 minutes: Tokyo, final player substitution. Hayashi is substituted for Nakajima, and Hanyu is brought in.
85 minutes: Fukuoka, from the left side, approaches the goal with an early cross, but Akimoto catches it firmly.

In addition to 2 goals, they defended well in the end and did not allow any goals, securing a victory. They have advanced to the semifinal round.

[Player Comments]
"Tanabe"
"I thought we couldn't win unless we worked hard today, and we talked about fighting with a strong mindset together. We were able to continue playing like that until the end, and it led to victory."
Q=Looking back on the goal scene.
"Kajiyama dropped the ball for me, and I was able to trap it in a good position. I aimed for the visible course and was able to score a goal just as I imagined. I was surprised myself (laughs), but I'm glad I took the shot. I want to score more goals from now on."

《Takahashi》
「There was a period this season where I couldn't play in the games, and during that time, I was able to deeply understand the thoughts of the fans and supporters by directly or indirectly hearing about how they came to support us in the stands. So, after scoring a goal, I ran to them.」

[Coach Yoshiyuki SHINODA's Press Conference Summary]
"The best thing was that we all won the semifinal round. I think it was a great result. Today, we increased our output both offensively and defensively. It was important for us to score the first goal, and then we were pushed back, so we decided to switch to a 5-4-1 formation. I told the players to play in a 5-4-1 formation when defending and a 3-4-3 formation when attacking. It worked well and we were able to score the second goal from a set piece, which we haven't been able to do recently."
The players have prepared for 3 days, reflecting on what they couldn't do at home last time, on how to finish the game. Anyway, we were able to achieve our biggest goal, which is to advance to the semifinal round. It was really great to be able to break through with the help of the players, staff, and fans/supporters. We also want to prepare well together for the next league match."

[Fukuoka - Coach Masami Ihara's Press Conference Summary]
"First of all, I am sorry that we were not able to achieve the result of advancing to the semifinal round, despite the support and cheers from many fans and supporters in the bad weather. It was our first time reaching the quarterfinals and entering the knockout stage. We aimed to go even further and in the first leg, we managed to equalize with an away goal and finish with a 1-1 draw. Today's match was our fourth game against Tokyo this year, and we expected it to be a very difficult game. We knew there was a possibility of conceding a goal, but we also talked about how if we could score one goal back, we could go into extra time. However, I think the timing of conceding the second goal was crucial in today's game."
It became very difficult when we were down 0-2 due to a set play. However, the players continued to run until the end of the game and I think they felt what was necessary to move forward, experiencing their first knockout stage. It was a big knockout stage for the team as well."